ARRL General Bulletin ARLB003 (2003)

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ARLB003 Hams help out during OK telephone emergency
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ARRL Bulletin 3 ARLB003
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT January 3, 2003
To all radio amateurs
SB QST ARL ARLB003
ARLB003 Hams help out during OK telephone emergency
Hams responded with emergency communication when Broken Arrow, OK, a
town of 75,000, experienced a citywide telephone outage on December
23. A request went out for amateurs to assist with emergency effort
at the local Emergency Operations Center and three area hospitals.
Several hams from the Broken Arrow Amateur Radio Club responded to
the call, staffing positions at the Broken Arrow EOC and three
hospital emergency rooms.
The operation lasted about five hours, with messages between the
EOCs and hospitals being passed. Lines of communications were also
opened with the Oklahoma State Department of Civil Emergency
Management in Oklahoma City via the HF amateur station in the Broken
Arrow EOC.
The trouble with the phone system was created by the loss of SS7
signaling, a digital protocol for call routing. Unable to route a
call out of the local exchange, Broken Arrow phone customers could
not call outside the city limits. As a result, the City of Broken
Arrow implemented its Telecommunications Failure Plan.
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